Transaction cards such as debit, credit or stored value cards are often used by account holders to purchase items or services or to obtain funds. Account holders often prefer the convenience of using such cards over carrying cash.
Transaction cards typically have a magnetic strip located on the back of the card which stores information for authenticating and processing transactions conducted with the card. However, fraudsters are sometimes able to skim the stored information on the card and use the skimmed information to create fraudulent cards for fraudulent transactions. Various locations may be compromised, for example, gas stations or other public card-transaction machines. The financial institution may detect suspicious transactions and notify the account holder, or the account holder may notify the financial institution regarding the fraudulent transactions. By that time, however, the fraudulent transactions have already been approved and the funds have already been taken from the account holder's account. In some cases, the financial institution is able to determine in advance that the information may have been fraudulently skimmed from the transaction card. In such situations, the financial institution is able to invalidate the card and issue a new card to the account holder. However, the account holder may have to wait a few days for a new card, and the delay in receiving a replacement card can be inconvenient for the account holder.